This website contains decisions and determinations of both the Labour Court and the WRC. It also contains decisions and recommendations of the Equality Tribunal since 1996 and post 2007 determinations of the Employment Appeals Tribunal. For more information click here

ADJUDICATION OFFICER DECISION/RECOMMENDATION

Parties:

Complaint(s):

Complaint seeking adjudication by the Workplace Relations Commission under section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991

CA-00009738-001

16/02/2017

Date of Adjudication Hearing: 05/10/2018

Workplace Relations Commission Adjudication Officer: Gerry Rooney

Procedure:

In accordance with Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act, 2015 following the referral of the complaint to me by the Director General, I inquired into the complaint and gave the parties an opportunity to be heard by me and to present to me any evidence relevant to the complaint.

Background:

This complaint refers to the non-payment of wages for a trail period of work.

Summary of Complainant’s Case:

The Complainant, a French national, on 15 January 2017 applied for the position of French teacher on a part-time contract. The job required the Complainant to be available for 4 hours or more a week between Monday to Friday. The rate of pay was €50 per hour.

The Complainant maintained that she was rostered for an attended work on 16 January 2017 for 4 hours, and on 20 January 2017 for 4 hours. The Complainant submitted that she was not paid for this work.

The Complainant provided an email from the Respondent dated 15 January 2017 which confirmed the work and the rate of pay of €50 per hour, and provided the Complainant with a class plan to conduct lessons. The email confirmed payment would be made on completion of the trial period of work, and this payment was reconfirmed by email on 19 January 2017.

The Complainant advised she received an email dated 21 January 2017 (submitted) which confirmed the Respondent had received quite a lot of positive feedback from students and where the Respondent was offered a job on a permanent basis.

The Complainant submitted that she never received payment for her work on 16 and 20 January 2017, and subsequent emails she received from the Respondent indicated that the Respondent hels the view that the Complainant had misrepresented information on her application form and as a consequence the contract was void and considered Ab initio.

The Complainant maintained that she had been offered a position, had attended the trial period of eight hours work which had been successful, and was in the process of scheduling future work when the offer of employment appeared to be withdrawn, and where the Respondent also refused to pay the Complainant for the work completed.

Summary of Respondent’s Case:

The Respondent failed to attend the hearing or make any written submission in response to the complaint. I’m satisfied that the Respondent was notified of the date and location of the hearing.

Findings and Conclusions:

Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under Schedule 6 of that Act. Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 requires that I make a decision under the relevant sections of that Act.

Section 5 (1) of the Payment of Wags Act 1991 states that an employer shall not make a deduction from the wages of an employee (or receive any payment from an employee) unless—

the deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of any statute or any instrument made under statute,

the deduction (or payment) is required or authorised to be made by virtue of a term of the employee's contract of employment included in the contract before, and in force at the time of, the deduction or payment, or

in the case of a deduction, the employee has given his prior consent in writing to it.

Decision:

Section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 requires that I make a decision in relation to the complaint(s)/dispute(s) in accordance with the relevant redress provisions under Schedule 6 of that Act.

Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1991 requires that I make a decision in relation to a contravention under Section 5 of that Act.

Section 6 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 provides that upon finding a complaint well-founded, an Adjudication Officer may direct an employer to pay an employee compensation of the net amount of the wages (after the making of any lawful deduction therefrom) that- (i) in case the complaint related to a deduction, would have been paid to the employee in respect of the week immediately preceding the date of the deduction if the deduction had not been made.

As I have found the complaint is well founded as respects the deductions from the Complainant’s wages, in that she was not paid for her work, I direct the Respondent to pay the Complainant compensation of €400 for the work conducted after the making of any lawful deduction.